OC Marathon events put focus on others

Thousands of runners make their way down Ocean Boulevard in Corona del Mar during the OC Marathon and Half Marathon. The race began at Fashion Island in Newport Beach and finished at the Orange County fairgrounds in Costa Mesa.EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Runners traversed a wide area of the county Sunday morning in the ninth annual OC Marathon main event and its related division races. More than 20,000 had registered for the weekend events, including about 4,500 for the Saturday kids event.

Winding through Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Irvine and Santa Ana, the marathon began at Fashion Island at 5:30 a.m. and ended at the OC Fair & Event Center.

The number of participants came in at a record high, up from 17,000 just last year. Other races included the OC Half Marathon, the Wahoo's 5K and the Kids Run the OC, which took place Saturday.

A heavy police presence was the order of the day less than one month after the bombings at the Boston Marathon. Several local law enforcement agencies worked together in providing security for the race, which included bomb-sniffing dogs from the Orange County Sheriff's Department and mounted units from Buena Park and Santa Ana police departments. FBI agents were also on hand with dogs.

According to Newport Beach Police Chief Jay Johnson, the mounted units are great for moving large crowds of people, and the horses provide the officers with excellent views of the area.

Johnson said the recent bombings in Boston were a factor in planning for security, but there were no specific threats to the OC Marathon itself.

Officers patrolled various sections of the route, including the start and finish areas. Johnson said the entire route was checked and secured before runners began on the course.

"We do have a bigger presence here," Johnson said. "We really want to make people feel safe."

The men's marathon champion was Kevin Havel, 23, of Laguna Niguel, who finished in 2 hours and 23 minutes.

Havel said the Boston bombings were certainly on his mind.

"We're here to show that we're still going to run," Havel said. "Regardless of what happened."

Before the race began, a moment of silence was observed in remembrance of the Boston victims, and many of the runners began on the course chanting "Boston!"

Women's marathon winner Kimberly O'Donnell, 23, of Santa Cruz said that as a Harvard University grad she felt compelled to run the OC Marathon to show her support for the Boston victims and also for some friends who still live in the city.

The first runner to finish the half-marathon was James Grabow, 23, also last year's champ. He finished this year in 1:07.

Liz Camy, 29, of Camarillo was the women's half-marathon champ, coming in at 1:18.

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Thousands of runners make their way down Ocean Boulevard in Corona del Mar during the OC Marathon and Half Marathon. The race began at Fashion Island in Newport Beach and finished at the Orange County fairgrounds in Costa Mesa. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Thousands of runners make their way down Ocean Boulevard in Corona del Mar during the OC Marathon and Half Marathon. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
It was a bittersweet ending to the OC Half Marathon for Sharon Geller and her daughter Brooklyn Thorson, who tore a tendon during her last run and had to be in a wheelchair. They were going straight from the race to a funeral for Geller's dad and Thorson's grandfather after taking part to honor his memory. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
A runner with a U.S. flag passes by a statue dedicated to fallen Marines at Castaways Park in Newport Beach during the OC Marathon and Half Marathon. The memorial is dedicated to the 1st Battalion, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division that were adopted by the city in 2003. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Karla Espinosa of Mexico City finished the OC Half Marathon with jubilation Sunday in Costa Mesa. Law enforcement beefed up security after last month's bombing at the Boston Marathon. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
The start of the OC Marathon in Newport Beach is packed with about 20,000 runners Sunday. Organizers talked about the victims of last month's Boston Marathon bombings and held a moment of silence before the race. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Joseph Ortiz adds a splash of partiotism to his finish at the OC Marathon on Sunday. About 20,000 runners took part in the event that started at Newport Center Drive loop and winded through the coastal communities of Newport Beach, then Santa Ana and ended at the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Runners pass underneath the Goldenrod footbridge in Corona del Mar during the OC Marathon and Half Marathon. The race began at Fashion Island in Newport Beach and finished at the Orange County fairgrounds in Costa Mesa. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Love birds Martin Michael and Ashlin Yahr of New York finish the OC Marathon Sunday in Costa Mesa. "I love her and I couldn't have done it without her," Michael said. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trisha Vu of Garden Grove holds a sign up to encourage her co-workers along Dover Drive in Newport Beach during the OC Marathon and Half Marathon. Vu works at Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center in Fountain Valley, where her co-workers are all ICU nurses. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Sheriff deputies keep their eyes trained near the area around the finish line at the OC Marathon on Sunday. About 20,000 runners took part in the event, which started in Newport Beach and ended in Costa Mesa. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Four-year-old Rya Allen, with her dad, Jason, keeps her eyes wide open for mom Melanie, who was running the OC Marathon on Sunday. They were waiting in Newport Beach. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Runners pass the "Connector" sculpture at the OC Performing Arts Center during the OC Marathon. The artistic scenery came at about the mile 16 marker on the marathon route. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Front runner and winner of the OC Half Marathon, Jimmy Grabow of Long Beach, passes through Corona del Mar on the way to the finish in Costa Mesa on Sunday. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Runners make their way down East Coast Highway in Corona del Mar during the OC Marathon and Half Marathon. The race began at Fashion Island in Newport Beach and finished at the Orange County fairgrounds in Costa Mesa. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
OC Marathon volunteer Dailoc Tran, 16, a Garden Grove High School student, crashes on the pavement in Corona del Mar, at mile 4, after a night of no sleep. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Runners make use of their footwear choices at Gisler Avenue and Country Club Drive in Costa Mesa during the OC Marathon. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
An exhausted Kellie Clark gets a supportive hug from running friend Alicia Jurado, at left, after finishing the OC Half Marathon on Sunday. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Runners get some support on the street at a water station at South Coast Plaza during the OC Marathon. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Karen Nicol of Santa Ana gives her granddaughter Kylie, 2, a better view of things as they wait for Nichol's daughter and Kylie's aunt to finish the OC Half Marathon on Sunday. They were at the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Runners show their support for the Boston Marathon bombing victims along Dover Drive in Newport Beach during the OC Marathon and Half Marathon. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Runners get an overhead view of Upper Newport Bay at Castaways Park in Newport Beach during the OC Marathon and Half Marathon. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Runner Richard Engersbach dons his sombrero in celebration of Cinco de Mayo at Castaways Park in Newport Beach during the OC Half Marathon. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Christian Fairing, at right, congratulates training partner Charlene Trinh, both from Huntington Beach after finishing the OC Marathon on Sunday. Fairing ran the Boston Marathon last month, finishing the race one half hour before the first bomb went off. "I'm happy to be alive," she said. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Stanley Choi finds a creative way to run the OC Half Marathon with his pal Minnie on Dover Drive in Newport Beach during the OC Marathon and Half Marathon. Dogs are not allowed on the race course but strollers are, he said. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Paul Baesel of La Habra kisses his wife after they finish the OC Half Marathon Sunday in Costa Mesa. They were celebrating Deannah's weight loss of 70 pounds. "One year ago I couldn't even run a mile," she said. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Kevin Chiroomi of Los Angeles takes a bat-like position as he warms up for the OC Marathon on Sunday in Newport Beach. This was his fourth marathon. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Sheriff's Investigator Kent McBride and his dog Falcon patrol the OC Fair & Event Center, where OC Marathon runners finished Sunday's race. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Stanley Choi finds a creative way to run the OC Half Marathon with his pal Minnie. Dogs are not allowed on the race course but strollers are, he said. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Liz Camy of Camarillo finishes first in the women's division in the OC Half Marathon on Sunday. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Kimberly O'Donnell, 23, of Santa Cruz breaks the tape after finishing first in the women's division of the OC Marathon on Sunday. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Security was increased at the OC Marathon on Sunday in the wake of the bombings last month at the Boston Marathon. Police stand watch at the starting line in Newport Beach before the run begins. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
OC Marathon runners and organizers stand strong with Boston marathoners after last month's deadly bombings. Organizers remembered victims with words, banners and a moment of silence before the race. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
OC Marathon men's winner Kevin Havel of Laguna Niguel crosses the finish Sunday at the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Christian Fairing, at right, congratulates training partner Charlene Trinh, both from Huntington Beach, after finishing the OC Marathon on Sunday. Fairing ran the Boston Marathon last month, finishing the race one half hour before the first bomb went off. "I'm happy to be alive," she said. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Tara Freese's French bulldog waits patiently for Freese's boyfriend, Jason Foreman, to finish the OC Half Marathon Sunday in Costa Mesa. MINDY SCHAUER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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